City of Crystals
by Renesmee4eva
Summary: WARNING: DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT READ CITY OF HEAVENLY FIRE! THIS IS A FANFICTION CONTINUATION OF THE STORY AND CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT READ THE BOOK YET! Summary inside. Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: If you have not read City of Heavenly Fire, I wouldn't advise you to read this unless you want spoilers! Okay, so I decided to do a fanfiction continuation of The Mortal Instruments series now that I have read CoHF!**

**Summary:** **The Dark War is over and all seems well with the Shadow World – as well as it can be anyway. Magnus and Alec are happily together again but is all really well with them? What about Simon and Isabelle? What will happen to their relationship now that Simon has basically forgotten everything? And something is about to change Jace and Clary's lives forever, but will things work out? And to top off all the drama, there may still be a threat on the horizon – bigger than the Dark War that just passed.**

**Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 1

June 2008

It was only the start of summer but the heat was already blazing down on Clary as she sat in Central Park with her sketch pad placed upon her knees.

She let the pencil lightly glide across the paper, sketching the scene in front of her; the trees in the background, ranging in size and shape as their branches – covered in leaves – reached up towards the sky that was streaked here and there with the odd wispy cloud, the blades of slightly long grass swaying gently in the delicate breeze and then finally, the reason she was here right now – Jace, who was lying on the ground staring off at something in the distance.

He had told her she could be a shadowhunter as well as an artist and she decided she would do just that. Sure, she had less time to draw and be an artist now that she was a shadowhunter but it didn't mean she didn't have any time.

Clary placed the pencil down with her sketch book and quietly walked over to Jace who was still paying no attention to her at the moment.

When she was about a foot away from him, she reached down to touch his arm when he moved as fast as a bolt of lightning.

His hands wrapped around her upper arms and he pulled her down to the ground, flipping over so Clary's back was against the ground and he was hovering over her.

His hands now rested on either side of Clary's small frame and his golden eyes stared down at her softly with amusement.

"Did you really think you could sneak up on me like that?" he asked, a playful smile gracing his lips.

"I was going to try," Clary replied, her breathing slightly quick from Jace's surprise attack.

Jace just smiled down at Clary lovingly. "You know," he said after a moment's silence. "You should wear teal more often. It's a great colour on you – it brings out your eyes... and your hair."

Clary just looked away for a moment. "Maybe I should wear something that makes my hair less noticeable," she said.

"Why? Your hair is beautiful. It's a rare colour and I love it. I love you," Jace said as he leaned his face down to gently brush his lips against Clary's cheek. He then kissed her nose, her forehead, her other cheek and finally, her lips.

His kiss lingered there the longest. It wasn't a heated, passionate kiss like some of the ones they shared but it was soft and gentle and full of love and adoration.

Clary smiled against Jace's lips and he pulled back slightly. "Did I say I love you?" Jace said, his lips brushing Clary's as he spoke, his eyes staring into hers – gold and green.

"Only about a million times," Clary said. "But it doesn't hurt to hear it again," she continued, her eyes twinkling as she smiled up at Jace.

After a moment of lying there just staring at each other, Jace pushed himself up off Clary and held out a hand to her.

She took it and he pulled her up to her feet.

Clary reached out to grab her sketchbook of the park bench but Jace had beaten her to it and he looked down at the picture Clary had been drawing.

"Amazing," he whispered, smiling at the picture before Clary reached out and took the sketchbook from his hands.

She closed it up, grabbed her pencil and then grabbed Jace's hand with her spare one before they started walking back to the institute.

_-o-O-o-_

Alec sat on the black leather couch and stared across at the recliner which was currently the spot from which the tiny, familiar cat stared back at him; his yellow eyes almost seemed as if they were glaring – judging him.

Alec heard the apartment door open and close but he didn't take his eyes off the cat.

"Having a staring match with a cat?" the familiar voice said as a body leaned over the back of the couch, casting a shadow across Alec's legs.

"He started it," Alec replied as he turned to face Magnus.

Even now, a couple of months after they had gotten back together, Alec couldn't get used to seeing Magnus's face smiling back at him.

He couldn't get used to seeing the familiar cat eyes staring into his blue ones. He could get used to the warlocks spiked, glittery hair. He couldn't get used to the familiar shock he got every time they touched.

But he would learn to. Sure, he had spent months moping over the fact he had lost his first love but Magnus was back and it was evident that he regretted making Alec suffer. It was evident he wanted to make things right and settle into a solid, steady relationship with the dark haired shadowhunter.

Magnus chuckled, reaching out to cup Alec's cheek before kissing him.

Alec moved, turning around on the couch so he was on his knees. He reached up with both hands and tangled his fingers in the warlock's glittery hair as he deepened the kiss.

Magnus took Alec's lower lip between his teeth and Alec sighed slightly, trying to get closer to the warlock despite the barrier the back of the couch formed between them.

Alec managed to climb over the arm of the couch while keeping his hands tangled in his boyfriend's hair and their lips stayed locked together.

Alec pressed himself closer to Magnus as the warlock wound his arms around Alec, locking in him in a hug before his hands moved and travelled up the shadowhunter's back before he cupped his face.

Alec took a step forward, making Magnus take a step backwards. He was about to deepen the kiss further when Magnus pulled away with a groan, gasping slightly for air.

Alec was taking deep breaths as well as he stared at his boyfriend whose cat-like eyes were gleaming and full of love yet annoyance.

"What..." Alec started to say when he heard the chime of the apartment's doorbell.

Magnus walked away towards the door, grumbling about people coming around at the most inconvenient times.

Chairman Meow walked past Alec, stopping briefly to look at him before continuing up the hall.

Alec paid little attention to the cat though; his eyes were fixed on his warlock boyfriend who had opened the apartment door.

No one was there – Alec could see that clearly.

Magnus stared out the door and looked around before he suddenly bent over for a second before standing up straight.

He closed the door and Alec was about to ask what had happened but he saw a piece of paper in his boyfriend's hands.

Magnus unfolded the piece of paper and his eyes skimmed over whatever was written on it. Only a mere second later, Magnus paled – the colour disappearing from his tanned skin.

Alec composed himself, walked over to Magnus and peered over his shoulder to read what was on the piece of paper.

His eyes trailed over the words that had been written in elegant, cursive script and he too felt himself stiffen. He didn't doubt the colour had drained from his face.

_I know where you are Alexander Lightwood. You cannot hide from me. I will find you and end you._

_-o-O-o-_

Clary smiled up at Jace as they walked along the sidewalks back to the institute. "I'm guessing we'll be doing training of some sort when we get back?" Clary said as she looked up at Jace, the afternoon sun causing Jace's hair to take on a more golden tone.

"You guessed correctly," Jace said.

Clary just groaned. She knew she was still kind of new to the shadow world but she knew what she was doing and she was pretty good at it. She felt as if training was a waste of time at some points.

"We don't have to train," Jace said, raising and eyebrow as he looked down at Clary, a flicker of some unidentified emotion appearing in his eyes for a brief moment.

Clary just looked down at her teal sneakers as she scuffed them against the pavement.

Jace just chuckled and slipped his hand out of Clary's before wrapping his arm around her shoulders, his fingers dancing lightly on her shoulder and upper arm.

Clary just giggled slightly as Jace's fingers lightly brushed her skin.

_-o-O-o-_

Isabelle sighed as she watched Simon, Eric and Matt argue playfully on the stage set up in the restaurant.

She didn't particularly like the music the band played – it was still terrible, even more so now that Jordan was no longer a part of the band.

Isabelle's heart contracted as she thought of the slim but muscular boy. He had always been so kind and caring and he had been so easy to talk to. He had been there for Simon but now, Simon had no recollection of the boy that had lost his life protecting Simon and trying to find him when he had been missing.

She could almost picture him on the stage with his dark hair tumbling into his hazel-green eyes as he tried to get the boys to settle down and be serious before they broke something that they would have to replace.

Her heart also contracted again as she thought about Maia. She knew Maia had planned to break up with Jordan but she knew that she still cared about him to some extent.

Isabelle shook her head to clear it of the upsetting thoughts and she looked up at the nerdy boy with glasses and he joked around with his friends.

She had to admit, she wasn't a fan of his style again – the 'Born in Brooklyn' t-shirt, the torn jeans and worn out sneakers was a nightmare to look at but it was who he was. His style didn't change his caring, charming personality. She was still the boy she loved – she hoped.

Ever since Simon's memory of the shadow world had been erased, Isabelle had been holding onto any loose thread she could find.

He remembered kissing her but it just wasn't enough for Isabelle. She had given him her heart and now she had to do it all over again.

She had to get him to fall in love with her again. Sure, it wasn't going to be that hard, it was easy to make guys fall in love with her but she wanted her relationship with Simon to be what it had been before – before the dark war.

_-o-O-o-_

Clary panted slightly as she dodged one of Jace's 'attacks'.

They had started out training and in a way, they still were training but it was turning into more of a game with each passing second. The two young Nephilim were becoming more and more distracted as the clock ticked.

Clary laughed as Jace tried to grab her but missed.

He spun on his heels and looked at the laughing red-head, his golden eyes gleaming.

"Your laugh is beautiful," he said as he stood up straight and looked at Clary as he tried to catch his breath.

Clary laughed once again.

Jace smiled at her and moved quickly, throwing his arms around Clary's waist and sending the two of them crashing to the mats on the floor.

Once again, Jace was hovering over Clary; his hands placed either side of her head.

He leaned down and brushed his lips against Clary's again.

In a shock movement, Clary pushed Jace backwards and climbed on top of him, sitting on his stomach. She smirked down at him in satisfaction.

Jace just rolled his eyes and placed his hands on Clary's hips, moving his thumbs in small circles as he smiled up at her. "You're good," he said. "Very tricky."

Clary just smiled and stood up a moment later.

Jace stood up after her and decided that training was done for the day.

The two of them packed up the training room and went off to clean up after their day.

**A/N: What did you think? Review Please!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! They all made me smile! I am so glad you guys are enjoying this already! Here's the next chapter!**

Chapter 2

_I know where you are Alexander Lightwood. You cannot hide from me. I will find you and end you._

Alec read over the writing on the piece of paper for the hundredth time that afternoon. The elegant, cursive script was so familiar yet he couldn't place it.

"Who would want to do this?" Magnus asked as he wrapped his arms around Alec and rested his chin on the young shadowhunter's shoulder.

"I don't know," Alec replied as he placed his hand over Magnus's.

"Why would someone want to do this?" Magnus continued.

"Again, I don't know. It can't be that dangerous though," Alec said. "We've faced the Endarkened, we survived travelling through a demon realm, I'm sure we will be able to get through whatever this is," he continued as he waved the piece of paper around.

"You're right there I guess," Magnus said. "There's still the question of why though."

Alec just sighed and turned around to face his boyfriend.

He looked up into the warlock's cat-like eyes and sighed when he noticed the worry dancing behind them.

"You need to stop worrying about me so much Magnus," Alec said. "I'm a shadowhunter, I can deal with this. I'll be fine," he continued as he placed a hand on his boyfriend's cheek in an attempt to comfort him.

"It doesn't make sense though," Magnus said. "What did you do to make someone want to kill you? Why would someone have something pinned against someone as amazing as you?"

"I didn't do anything," Alec said. "I don't know why it's happening but it is and we have to deal with it. We can deal with it... we will. It's a part of our job as shadowhunters to protect the mundane world from danger and while doing that, we put ourselves in danger but we overcome it. Just trust me Magnus, stop worrying. I'll be fine."

Magnus stared down into Alec's blue eyes and stayed silent for a moment before he leaned down and pressed his lips to Alec's in a sweet, gentle kiss.

Alec smiled against the kiss and wrapped his arms around Magnus before placing his head on the warlock's chest.

"I know you can get through this. I trust you and I believe in you but I can't help myself. I worry about you Alec, I always have."

Alec just smiled slightly. It was nice to know that someone cared enough to be worried about him. There were very few people in his life that were like that.

Alec sighed in content as Magnus wrapped his arms around him.

They both stood there for a moment, silently enjoying their embrace before Alec spoke. "Do you think the others should know? Just in case," Alec said.

"I think they should," Magnus replied, brushing his lips across Alec's forehead.

_-o-O-o-_

Clary pulled her damp hair up into a ponytail before walking out of her bathroom.

She was about to walk out of her room when an arm appeared in the doorway, blocking her exit.

Clary stared for a moment before her eyes drifted to the body the arm was connected to. She raised her eyes and looked straight into Jace's.

He just smirked down at her.

"Is there a reason you're not wearing a shirt?" Clary asked, her eyes briefly dropping to Jace's toned chest.

"Don't pretend you don't like it," Jace replied as he dropped his arm before wrapping it around Clary's waist.

Clary just laughed and put her hands on Jace's chest. "So why are you here?"

"Am I not allowed to come and see my beautiful girlfriend?" Jace asked, his golden eyes staring down at Clary.

Clary just smiled up at Jace before she stretched up and wrapped her arms around his neck. Her fingers tangled themselves in Jace's blonde hair and she pressed her lips to his.

Jace moved his arms so his hands were now on Clary's hips and he kissed her back softly for a moment before he deepened the kiss.

He stepped forward, making Clary step back into the room.

When they were away from the door, Jace kicked it shut before spinning around so Clary was pinned up against the wall.

He pulled back for a second to catch his breath before ducking his head to kiss Clary again.

A moment later, he lifted Clary up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. She used the extra height to deepen the kiss even more.

She felt movement a moment later and realized Jace was walking and just as she pulled back to catch her breath, she felt the soft mattress of her bed underneath her.

She pulled Jace down onto the bed as she tried to catch her breath.

Jace was just smiling as he lay down beside her. He ran a hand through his blonde hair then rolled over so half of his body was hovering over Clary.

He leaned down and brushed his lips over Clary's cheek before kissing her nose, her other cheek, her forehead and her lips.

His kiss was soft and gentle and lingered on Clary's lips for a moment before he trailed a line of kisses down her neck and along her collarbone.

He swung his leg over Clary's waist and continued to kiss her.

His mouth had just connected with hers again when the sudden, shrill sound of Clary's phone broke them apart.

Clary sighed and reached into her pocket, pulling out her phone and answering the call.

"What's up Simon?" she asked as she looked up at Jace who was smiling but clearly annoyed that they had been interrupted.

"You said you'd help me learn this stuff..." Simon replied.

Clary thought for a moment, confused, before she realized what Simon was talking about.

She had promised to help him study the Codex and all, since he had to learn everything before he could ascend.

"Oh, right! I'm sorry Simon, I'll be there shortly!" Clary said.

"Alright... bye," Simon replied.

"Bye," Clary said, hanging up and looking at Jace again who was now clearly confused.

"What was that about? Why do you have to go?" Jace asked.

"I promised Simon I would help him study the Codex and all so he can ascend," Clary said as Jace moved back to sitting beside her.

"Why can't Isabelle help him? She's hanging out with him after all... I want you to stay here," Jace said.

"You know how Isabelle feels right now Jace. She's going through a hard time... I'll be back later," Clary said, climbing off the bed.

"Alright," Jace said. "I'll find something to do."

Clary just smiled at Jace before walking out of the room and making her way down to the elevator.

_-o-O-o-_

Simon was flicking through the pages of the Codex when Clary walked into his room, shutting the door behind her.

"I see you've already started," she said with a small smile.

"Yeah... it's a lot to take in," Simon replied, looking up at Clary with a smile.

"It is... I know it took me a while to fully understand everything when I first discovered the shadow world and I had to learn everything while training with Jace and searching for my mother," Clary said with a small laugh.

Simon just nodded, looking back down at the Codex. "At least you didn't have to worry whether you'd survive becoming a shadowhunter... you already were one," Simon said.

"You'll survive Simon. You're strong... you'll be able to do it," Clary said as she climbed onto the bed and sat down beside Simon, ready to explain anything he didn't understand.

"What's it like? Fighting demons?" Simon asked, looking up from the Codex again.

"It can be scary... especially when it's your first time fighting them and you've never really seen them before; after a while though it becomes exciting – thrilling. You know – the rush of adrenaline and all..." Clary said.

"So what's the Mortal Mirror? How come no one knows where it is?" Simon asked, looking up again.

Clary laughed slightly. "The Codex really needs to be updated... the Mortal Mirror is Lake Lyn in Idris," she said.

"Oh... alright... yeah, they need to update this," Simon said, smiling as he went back to reading.

Simon nodded and went back to reading, occasionally asking Clary to explain something in further detail.

"Clary, what if after all this studying the Clave decides they don't want to let me ascend?" Simon asked quietly after a moment.

Clary looked up at Simon. "Simon, they're desperate for more shadowhunters. After the events of the Dark War, after losing all those shadowhunters because they were either Endarkened or killed, we need more. If they turn you down, they'd be idiots. You have so many people that will fight back if the Clave decides to turn you down. You'll be able to ascend Simon, trust me," she said confidently.

"Thanks Clary... I can count on you to get rid of my worries," Simon said with a smile, wrapping his arms around his best friend.

Clary just laughed and hugged Simon back.

_-o-O-o-_

Isabelle just kicked a stone off the path as she walked through the park.

Hanging out with Simon at his gig had been fun. He seemed so happy playing music despite the fact the band was terrible.

Isabelle missed Simon as a Daylighter - she missed the relationship they'd had finally declared their love to each other but then they were trapped in the demon realm and either Magnus or Simon had to give up their immortality.

Simon had volunteered to give up his immortality – and his memories – to save Magnus and it had been a rather emotional time for Isabelle.

She knew he hadn't wanted immortality and she knew eventually he would be alone but she hadn't wanted to lose him.

When Magnus had been able to give Simon back some of his memories, a small glimmer of hope began to shine – a small spark deep inside her, waiting to be ignited. Isabelle knew that maybe, just maybe, she could get back what she had with Simon but she also knew it was going to take time.

It took the two of them months to finally declare their love and now it was probably going to take months again before they got back to where they had been.

There were benefits to the current situation though, Isabelle thought. Simon could enter the institute now, in fact, if the Clave allowed him to ascend he would actually be living in the institute which meant they could spend more time together and maybe move things along a little faster.

Another stone became the victim of Isabelle's boot and went flying down the path.

Eventually, Isabelle left the park and made her way along the sidewalk, following the familiar route back to the institute.

_-o-O-o-_

Isabelle found slight comfort in her black and hot pink room.

She sat down on her bed, absentmindedly running her fingers over the hot pink satin quilt cover.

Thoughts constantly ran through her mind – what would happen if the Clave turned Simon down? How were they going to work out their relationship? Why did Magnus's father have to be such an ass and take away Simon's memory?

Isabelle flopped back on the bed, her ink black hair fanning out around her head.

She stared at her ceiling in silence as she tried to reassure herself that everything was going to be alright.

Isabelle had never felt so unsure before. Before Simon lost his immortality and memories, her future had been clear – she was going to fight demons and be with Simon for as long as she could.

Now, her future was unclear. She had to restart her relationship and build up the trust and love again. If Simon ascended though, it would be so much harder considering the fact he would be training constantly.

Isabelle just sighed and sat up again, reaching out to the photo frame that sat neatly on her bedside table – in fact, it was probably the only thing in Isabelle's room that was neat.

Inside the frame was a picture Clary had taken when Simon was a Daylighter.

They hadn't realized Clary had taken the photo until she gave it them.

Isabelle had no idea what had happened to Simon's picture – it was probably still pinned to the refrigerator in the apartment he and Jordan used to share before the Dark War.

Simon and Isabelle had just been hanging out in Idris talking when the picture had been taken.

It was just a simple thing, yet it brought back so many memories – the stories he'd told her, the way he'd comforted her after Max's death, the way he'd always been there for her; they were things she'd never forget.

Isabelle carefully placed the picture back on her bedside table and lay down on her bed again, silently staring at the ceiling.

**A/N: Review Please!**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Two Weeks Later – Mid June

"Are you sure it's not someone playing some kind of joke?" Isabelle asked her brother as she stared down at the note before Jace pulled it out of her hand.

"I highly doubt it's a joke Isabelle," Jace said, running a hand through his golden blonde hair. "The only people that know Alec's name are the Nephilim and the Downworlders and no one would play a joke like this."

"Then who would want to kill Alec?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out but we have no leads. This note appeared at the door of my apartment and there was no one around, not that I could see anyway. Whoever it was dropped the note, rang the doorbell and ran for it," Magnus said.

"Have you considered trying a tracking spell on the note? I mean... it belonged to someone once I guess. It was their paper," Jace said.

"It doesn't work like that Jace, and you know it," Magnus said.

Jace just sighed. "There has to be a way to find out who is threatening Alec."

"The only thing we can do at the moment is wait for more information... we have to wait for a lead," Magnus said.

"That could take forever..." Isabelle said. "What if we don't get a lead?"

"Someone is after Alec, we know that much," Magnus said. "Whoever has posed this threat to Alec will either continue to leave threats for a while or they will try and strike. We will find out who it is. Alec is a strong fighter, as are you two, Clary and I. We have nothing to worry about."

Isabelle just nodded, knowing Magnus was right.

With a warlock and four shadowhunters with exceptional skills – Jace with his seraph blades, Alec with his bow and arrows, Isabelle with her whip and Clary with her rune powers – Alec would be safe. Whoever had posed this threat had picked the wrong family to mess with and they were going down one way or another.

_-o-O-o-_

Simon had been doing really well in his studying lately. He had now finished reading the Codex and he was now studying the Law and the history of the Nephilim in more detail.

He still had to learn more about demons, Downworlders, weapons and runes though – and there were a lot of books he had to go through.

Clary had dropped them around to his place yesterday. He now had a copy of the Gray Book and many more books of varying thickness on weapons, demons and Downworlders plus Clary's notes on everything from when she had been studying.

Simon sighed as he looked at the book in front of him. He was currently studying the book on weapons – one of the more interesting subjects he had left to study.

He was enjoying himself and he was looking forward to becoming a shadowhunter – it was kind of like one of his video games, hunting monsters and all.

He was also afraid though. He knew how things went. His situation would be explained and as long as no one objected to him becoming a shadowhunter the consul would ask him some questions. As long as all went well there, he would then have to drink from the Mortal Cup. This was the part he was afraid of. Even though Clary had reassured him constantly, he was still slightly afraid. He'd heard the stories of people – mundanes – ascending and he knew the dangers that the Mortal Cup brought. He knew that if he wasn't strong enough, he might just die during the process of becoming a shadowhunter.

Simon shook his head to clear it and went back to studying.

_-o-O-o-_

Jocelyn smiled up at Luke, her green eyes shining as they stared into his blue ones.

She still couldn't believe he was hers.

She still couldn't believe it had taken her so long to realize she actually loved him.

She still couldn't believe she had thought she'd actually loved Valentine.

She wouldn't change her past though. Sure, Valentine had been twisted – sadistic and power hungry – but without him, Clary wouldn't be a part of this world.

Clary was the only reason Jocelyn was grateful for Valentine. There was Jonathan as well but he had been a dark, twisted person just like his father – probably worse in fact – right up until his death.

Thinking about her now dead son brought a quick stab of pain to Jocelyn's chest.

In his final moments, Jonathan had been who he should have been his entire life. He had been caring and he was truly sorry for what he had done.

She wished he had still been alive now. She wished there had been some way to save him so she could have the son she'd always wanted – so she could just hold him in her arms and let him know how much she loved him.

Jocelyn was brought back to reality by Luke as he wrapped his arms – strong and warm – around her waist.

"What are you thinking about?" Luke asked quietly, brushing his lips across Jocelyn's forehead.

"Jonathan," Jocelyn replied in a whisper as tears stung the back of her eyes.

Luke just sighed and held Jocelyn a bit tighter. He didn't know what to say right now. What did you say to a person that had lost their son – the boy that had destroyed half a population because he was influenced by evil then felt bad about it and was loved because the evil had been burned away?

While Jocelyn calmed down, Luke just held onto her, whispering sweet nothings in her ear.

_-o-O-o-_

Clary was sitting on the stone bench in the greenhouse, sketching the scene in front of her – the gorgeous green plants dotted here and there with flowers of vibrant colours – almost like jewels.

She should probably be doing some sort of training right now but the way the sunlight was filtering through the glass dome – the way it hit the plants – made the scene to rare to miss. She just had to draw it. Sure, she could have take a photo and drawn later but she wanted to experience this in real life.

"Clary?" she heard Jace's voice ring out from somewhere in the institute. It was faint – barely audible – so she assumed he was probably looking for her on the ground floor.

Clary looked back down at her drawing and reached out for her green pencil that sat beside her. She was in the middle of shading in some of the plants when a shadow was cast over her and her sketchbook.

Slowly, she raised her head and eventually her eyes met Jace's.

He stood in front of her with his arms folded over his chest and an eyebrow raised.

"Didn't you hear me calling you?" Jace asked after a second.

"Move," Clary replied, reaching out to push Jace to the side.

Caught off guard, he stumbled to the side and Clary smirked before going back to her drawing.

"Sorry..." Clary said, staying focused on her drawing.

Jace just sighed and sat down beside Clary, moving her pencils out of the way.

"That looks amazing," Jace said after a while of watching Clary shade in the drawing – slowly bringing it to life.

Clary just smiled. "Thanks," she said. "So... you were calling me before?" Clary asked.

"Yeah... I was thinking we should do a bit of training... we haven't trained in a few days and we want to improve our skills, not weaken them due to lack of training," Jace said.

"Alright," Clary said with a sigh before gathering her stuff and going to change into something suitable for training.

_-o-O-o-_

Isabelle had decided to help Simon with some of his studying. It would give her a chance to build up some trust again.

She knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer it.

A moment later, the door opened revealing a tall girl with dark hair and brown eyes. She also had a few freckles splayed across her nose.

This wasn't someone Isabelle had ever met.

"Hello... can I help you?" the girl asked, seeming a little shocked.

"Yeah... I'm here to help Simon... with an English assignment," Isabelle said, not sure what else to say.

She couldn't really say she was here to help Simon study the ways of the Nephilim – a race of half angel half human beings who protect the mundane society from demons and rogue Downworlders – so he could become one himself.

"Oh, alright... I wasn't aware he had an English assignment," the girl said before stepping out of the doorway to allow Isabelle to enter the house. "Simon! Your friend is here!" she called down the hall.

Isabelle could hear the sound of a door opening and a moment later Simon appeared in the living area and looked straight at her.

"Isabelle... why are you here?" Simon asked, merely curious.

"I'm here to help you with our English assignment," Isabelle said, giving Simon a look, hoping he would play along.

"Oh, right, come on," Simon said after a moment's hesitation.

Isabelle followed Simon down the hall to his room and closed the door behind her.

"Who was that?" she asked as she sat down on the bed beside Simon.

"Huh?" Simon said.

"Who was that girl?" Isabelle asked.

"That was my sister Rebecca. She's visiting from New Jersey."

"Oh... okay," Isabelle said as she looked down at the book Simon was currently reading.

_-o-O-o-_

Jace just smiled at Clary as the two of them practiced with the blades.

Last time they had trained together, they had been working on their stamina and flexibility. This time, they were working on their attacks and defences.

"Nice try," Clary said with a smirk as she raised her blade to block Jace's attack.

She reached out and pushed against his chest, effectively making him stumble backwards while she got into a defensive position.

Jace just chuckled and he went to put the blade back with Clary staring after him.

"Do you not want to work on something else? Not all attacks involve weapons remember... and you may just be caught without a weapon at some point," Jace said, looking back over his shoulder.

Clary joined Jace a moment later and put her blade back before the two of them began working on attacks and defences without weapons.

Jace managed to pin Clary to the mat a few times – he had to admit, she was very skilled – but she currently had him pinned.

Her hands were wrapped around his wrists, pinning them to the mat and she was sitting on his stomach.

Jace was about to roll and pin Clary to the mat when suddenly her hands let go of his wrists and her weight was gone from his stomach.

He blinked and sat up just in time to see Clary dart out the door of the training room.

_-o-O-o-_

Clary ran to the nearest bathroom and threw the door open and ran to the toilet, not bothering to shut the door.

Just as she dropped to her knees, her lunch came back up.

A few moments later, Clary heard footsteps and she felt a warm hand on her back. Jace.

"Are you alright Clary?" Jace asked when she stopped throwing up, his silky voice laced with concern.

Clary just nodded slightly and leaned back against the wall.

Jace flushed the toilet before walking over to the sink to get a damp wash cloth.

He then walked back over to Clary and crouched down near her, handing her the wash cloth.

Clary just wiped her face before taking a breath.

"I don't know what happened," she said. "I just... I just suddenly felt sick."

"Maybe you ate something you shouldn't have," Jace suggested.

"Maybe..." Clary said as she thought about what could have caused her sudden wave of nausea.

"I think we're done with training for today," Jace said as he helped Clary to her feet.

Clary just nodded in agreement and both of them walked out of the bathroom.

_-o-O-o-_

After about an hour of thinking – and Jace constantly checking on her to make sure everything was alright – Clary had come to two possible conclusions.

One of those conclusions was she had eaten something bad for lunch.

The second conclusion – the one that scared Clary – came to her as she thought about her relationship with Jace; what she and Jace had done that night in the cavern and subsequently, many nights afterwards – one night in particular.

Magnus had thrown a party back at the end of April – the reason behind the party, no one knew – and afterwards, when Jace and Clary had left the party, they had gotten a bit carried away and as a result, they had completely forgotten about using protection.

Her second conclusion was that she was pregnant.

She didn't want to raid all the bathrooms searching for a pregnancy test so she simply got up off her bed, pulled on her sneakers and walked out the door.

As she walked out of the elevator onto the ground floor, she almost ran into Jace.

"Where are you going?" he asked, noticing she had her purse in her hand.

"Just out, I'll be back soon," Clary said.

"Are you sure? Are you alright?" Jace said, still worrying over what had happened earlier.

"Yes, I'm fine Jace," Clary said, flashing what she hoped was a convincing smile.

Apparently it was, as Jace let her leave the institute.

Clary walked along the sidewalk towards the main part of town.

This was going to be embarrassing, she thought. Probably the most embarrassing thing she'd ever done.

When Clary finally arrived where she needed to be, she paused and stared at the door before taking a deep breath and walking inside.

She walked up to the counter, her heart racing, and looked at the lady behind the counter.

"Could you show me where your pregnancy tests are please?" Clary asked.

_-o-O-o-_

Clary waited, drumming her fingers against the counter top in the bathroom as she waited for the results of the pregnancy test.

She had returned to the institute and – luckily – no one had seen her.

When she had asked for the pregnancy test, the lady behind the counter had given her what had appeared to be a disapproving look before mumbling something about teenagers and how they were irresponsible and didn't know what they were getting into as she showed Clary where the pregnancy tests were.

Clary had expected as much and she had to agree with the lady in a way. She and Jace never really thought about the outcome of the actions – they used protection; they shouldn't have to worry about unplanned pregnancy but then again, protection wasn't always reliable.

Staring at her watch, Clary realized it was a minute past the time the pregnancy test would be showing the results.

Slowly, Clary dropped her eyes to the pregnancy test.

Fear and nervousness shot through her.

She felt as if ice water was pumping through her veins.

The test read positive.

**A/N: And that's the end of this chapter! What do you think? I also have some questions that I need answers to so I can write the future chapters for this story.**

**First of all, this question regards Simon and his ascension. Simon is going to need a shadowhunter name... should he take Luke's surname (Graymark) or Jocelyn's surname (Fairchild) or should he get one of his own? If he should have one of his own, what should it be?**

**Secondly... Clary is pregnant... I know it's going to be a little while before we find out more about her baby but here are some more questions I need answered...**

**What gender should Clary's baby be? (There will also be a poll on my profile... vote on that too!)  
Name suggestions?**

**Review Please!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I planned to have this chapter up earlier but I got sick and didn't have the time to finish and post it... I'm a bit better today so I got this up for you guys! Enjoy!**

Chapter 4

_Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang._

Simon looked up as he heard the banging on the front door.

_Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang._

The banging came again and Simon got up and walked out of his room to answer the door.

He pulled the door open and standing in front of him was Clary – looking very flustered.

"Clary? What's up?" Simon asked.

Clary just walked into the house and Simon shut the door behind her, turning to see Clary pacing across the small living area, wringing her hands together.

"Why is this happening? I can't do this... why did this have to happen... why me?" she was mumbling.

"What are you talking about Clary?" Simon asked.

"How do I tell Jace? How will he react? Does he want this? What am I going to do?" Clary continued, her breathing increasing slightly and her voice rising an octave as she continued to pace across the floor, ignoring Simon.

"Clary... what are you talking about? What's going on?" Simon asked again, staring at his best friend as he began to grow worried for her.

"I'm not ready for this... I can't..." Clary said, running a hand through her messy red curls – it was clear that she had been running to Simon's house.

Simon just sighed and walked over to Clary and caught her wrist. He spun her around and placed his hands on her shoulders. "What are you talking about Clary? You're making no sense right now..." he said.

"How do I tell Jace? What do I do? I'm too young for this..." Clary said, her voice shaking as tears welled up in her eyes.

Simon could tell she was scared about whatever was going on.

"What do you need to tell Jace? Please talk to me... stop asking questions and tell me what's going on please," Simon said.

"I'm pregnant..." Clary said quietly – so quiet that Simon barely heard her.

"What? I swear I heard you say you're pregnant?" Simon said.

"I did... I am..." Clary said, louder this time.

"Wait... you and Jace..." Simon said, trailing off in a bit of shock.

Clary just nodded.

Simon shivered slightly and shook the thought from his head.

"I'm too young to be a mother..." Clary continued as she pulled away from Simon and sat on the couch.

"Okay... you did a pregnancy test? And it was positive?" Simon asked as he sat down beside Clary.

"Yes," Clary said.

"Did you see a doctor... or Magnus or someone that could confirm it? Pregnancy tests aren't always right... according to Rebecca anyway..."Simon said.

"I know... but... I haven't seen Magnus or anyone yet but I just... I'm showing signs Simon..." Clary said, finally letting the tears fall.

Simon just wrapped Clary in an embrace.

"I'm scared Simon... what will Jace say... what will my Mom and Luke say?" Clary asked.

"I don't know..." Simon said "The only way you'll find out is if you tell them."

Clary just took a shaky breath and wiped her hand across her face, brushing the tears away.

"You'll be fine Clary. You're strong... you always have been. You'll get through this and I'm always going to be here for you, no matter what," Simon said with a small smile.

"Thanks Simon. "You're the best," Clary replied with a smile. "I guess I better stop delaying this and get it over with," she continued as she pulled back from Simon and stood up.

"If Jace says or does anything to make you upset, let me know and I'll beat him up for you," Simon said.

Clary just laughed. "Thanks for the offer Simon, but I'm not going to sugar coat this... Jace has a lot more training than you and he would kick your ass."

"Good to know you have faith in me..." Simon said.

"You know I love you Simon," Clary said, quickly hugging Simon before she walked out of the living room and out the front door.

Simon just sighed and got up to go back to studying.

_-o-O-o-_

Clary slowly walked through the institute, searching for Jace. She assumed he would be in the training room but he wasn't so she continued to search until she found him in the library.

She walked over to him and sat down beside him. "Hey Clary," Jace said with a smile as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Hey Jace... there's something I need to tell you..." Clary said, taking a deep breath.

"And what would that be?" Jace asked.

"Promise you won't freak out?" Clary asked.

Jace just nodded. "Go on..."

"Remember the party Magnus threw back in April?" Clary asked after a moment of silence.

"Yeah..." Jace said. "What about it?" he asked.

"Well... you remember what we did afterwards?" Clary asked.

Jace simply nodded and waited for Clary to continue talking.

Clary took another deep breath. "Jace... we got carried away... we didn't even think about using protection..." she said, trailing for as she noticed Jace pale slightly.

"You're not..." Jace trailed off, his voice unusually quiet.

Clary just nodded slightly. "I'm pregnant Jace... with your baby..." she said, her voice quiet now.

"But... I'm sure we used protection..." Jace said, dropping his eyes so he was staring at his hands as he thought back to that night in late April; _his hands on Clary, their lips pressed together, clothes coming off... no protection..._

Jace took in a shaky breath and looked back up at Clary.

"When did you find out?" he asked, his voice hardly a whisper.

"Earlier today, after I threw up... when I went out earlier, I got a pregnancy test and after I saw that it said 'positive'... I went and freaked out on Simon because I didn't know what you were going to think... I needed his reassurance... I mean... I don't even know if you want this... I don't know if I'll be able to handle it... I-" Clary said but Jace cut her off with a kiss.

Clary looked up at Jace. He was still paler than usual but he had a small smile on his face as he looked down at Clary.

"Listen Clary..." Jace started.

Clary felt her heart rate pick up as she listened to Jace, unsure of what he was going to say.

"I know you're not ready for this... I'm not really ready either and it's a bit of a shock since we haven't planned this but... I mean, shadowhunters tend to live short lives and that means we do things earlier than mundanes... I'm sure we'll get through this..." Jace said.

"I still think I'm a bit too young for this Jace... I'm only sixteen... I'm sure shadowhunters are a bit older than this when they fall... pregnant..." Clary said.

"That may be so but... you're strong Clary... I believe in you," Jace said, some of his colour finally coming back as he recovered from his shock.

Clary just smiled at Jace. "So... are you happy?" she asked.

Jace just smiled at Clary. "Yeah... we'll get through this Clary. Together," he said.

Clary smiled wider and just wrapped her arms around Jace, happy that he was being supportive and not freaking out.

_-o-O-o-_

"You've still got nothing?" Alec asked, looking up as Magnus walked into the living area of the apartment.

Magnus just shook his head slightly. "Unfortunately, no. I just... don't understand this," he said, looking down at the piece of paper.

Ever since it had turned up, Magnus had been trying to figure out who had sent it – he'd even gone as far as staring at the piece of paper for a while, trying to figure out whether or not he had seen the handwriting before and who it belonged to.

Tracking spells didn't work – nothing worked and that only put those close to Alec on guard, ready for an attack at any time.

Alec just sighed and got up, stepping over the cat that had been lying at his feet before walking around to Magnus.

"I'm sure we'll figure it out soon. I've survived a demon realm, I can survive whatever this threat is," he said, reaching up to kiss Magnus.

Their lips had just touched when the sound of the doorbell suddenly rang through the apartment.

Magnus moved away from Alec and went over to the door and pulled it open only to find no one there.

Once again, Alec saw Magnus bend over and stand up a second later.

"Another note?" Alec asked as Magnus turned around and shut the door.

"Yes..." Magnus replied as he stared down at the new note.

Alec walked over to him to look at it as well.

_If you wish to remain with your boyfriend so he can protect you, be my guest. I will just get to those closest to you. Choose your footsteps wisely Alexander, because I am watching and I will strike when the time is right._

"So now they're threatening my family?" Alec said, concern lacing his voice.

"They won't touch them Alec," Magnus replied. "They're safe in the institute and I think you will be too."

"It's not like I'm here all the time," Alec said. "I just... I don't know what to do right now Magnus... whoever this is has just threatened my family – they've threatened you... what do I do?"

"Go back to the institute... I can protect myself here from whoever this threat is... they're no match for the High Warlock of Brooklyn," Magnus said with a smirk.

"I don't want to risk them hurting you..." Alec said.

"You're torn, I know," Magnus said as he stared down into Alec's blue eyes. "You want to be here with me so you know I'm alright but you want to be with Isabelle and Jace as well... I'll be fine here on my own Alec and I'm not saying you can't be here, I'm just saying you need to be with your family as well."

Alec just nodded. "You're right..." he said. "I should probably go warn the others as well..."

"You do that," Magnus said. "I'll see if I can find anything linked to this note..."

Alec just nodded and reached up to kiss Magnus before he left.

The kiss was slow and sweet – filled with love and affection.

Alec pulled away a moment later and then went to head out.

He made sure he still had his dagger just in case something happened – a good shadowhunter never went out without some kind of weapon.

He then opened the door to Magnus's apartment and he turned to smile at Magnus briefly before he walked out to head back to the institute.

**A/N: So... here's an interesting fact... Simon's ascension will be coming up in a few chapters! Three or four chapters at the most! So, with that said, I still need your suggestions for his shadowhunter surname! Should it be Fairchild, Graymark or something else? Let me know!**

**Secondly, we still have a while before we find out much information about Clary's baby but your suggestions are appreciated and they will help me to decide, plan and write the future chapters for this story! So, what should the gender of Clary and Jace's baby be and what are your name suggestions? I've only received a few at the moment and I need more! I'm hopeless at coming up with names myself so your suggestions are appreciated! (There is also a poll on my profile regarding the gender of the baby so vote on that too)**

**Thirdly, who do you think is after Alec? Do you want to take a guess at the reason they are after Alec?**

**Finally... what would you guys like to see in this story? **

**Review Please!**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The breeze outside was warm and gentle – it was nice.

Alec had his hands in his pockets as he walked up the street in the direction of the institute.

Thoughts and worries were buzzing through his head as he thought about the notes and his family. Someone was out there threatening him and the ones he cared about and he didn't like it. He knew that shadowhunters risked their lives and often died young but he didn't want that to happen to the ones he loved.

Alec's blue eyes flicked across the street as a shadow moved at the end of an alley. Whatever – or whoever – it was, was hiding in the shadows out of sight.

Normally, Alec would've left it alone but with the current situation he was in, he felt like it would be better to be safe than sorry.

His hand found the hilt of his dagger and he wrapped his fingers around it before he crossed the street and made his way towards the alley, thankful he had a glamour on.

As he got closer to the alley, he could make out a small figure in the shadows.

Alec tightened his grip on the hilt of his dagger and lifted it slightly as he stepped into the alley.

Only a second later, he realized what he had seen.

Standing in front of him was a small person with fair skin. Her hair was almost as fair as her skin and when she looked up, her eyes were an odd shade of blue – they almost appeared to be a shade of violet.

Standing in front of him, was a faerie.

Alec lowered his dagger slightly but kept his guard up. "What are you doing here?" he asked, keeping his eyes locked on the faerie girl in front of him.

"Looking for you," the faerie girl replied with a smile that had Alec wanting to get away from her as fast as possible.

"And why are you looking for me?"

"Orders from the Queen," the faerie girl replied. The look on her face made Alec feel as if something wasn't right and only seconds later, he felt something collide with his head and then everything went black.

_-o-O-o-_

The sound of Isabelle's high-heeled boots could be heard coming down the hallway and before Jace could react, she had already throw his bedroom door open.

The door hit the wall and bounced back, swinging shut again but Isabelle threw her hand out to stop it.

"Is there a reason you just barged into my room?" Jace asked as he looked up, one eyebrow raised.

"No, I thought I would just come in here to annoy you," Isabelle replied sarcastically. Before Jace had a chance to respond – no doubt with a sarcastic remark of his own – Isabelle continued speaking. "Have you heard from Alec?"

"No, he's with Magnus," Jace stated lazily. "Why?"

"Because he's not with Magnus," Isabelle replied. "He left the apartment an hour ago to come here and he hasn't turned up."

"Maybe he's just having some time alone," Jace said.

"Or something could've happened to him... Jace we need to try and find him. He's not answering his phone and well, something could've happened."

"I'm sure he's fine Isabelle -"

"They got another note today!" Isabelle exclaimed. "Magnus told me what it said and I can't remember all of it but it mentioned something about striking when the time is right... Jace, whoever is sending those notes might have gotten to Alec."

Jace was off his bed a second later and he squeezed past Isabelle who simply stared after Jace for a moment before she followed him.

"Has Magnus got any leads on the notes?" Jace asked as he started preparing to find his Parabatai.

"No, but he's still trying. There has to be something we can do to help..." Isabelle's voice wavered slightly as she worried about her older brother.

"There is... we may not be able to track whoever the threat is but we can track Alec," Jace said as he opened the door to Alec's room and found the spare stele Alec always kept in his top drawer.

Holding the spare stele in his hand, Jace grabbed his own stele and drew a tracking rune on his hand and waited.

A few moments passed and nothing happened so he tried again as Isabelle just watched, hope written across her face.

After his third attempt failed, Jace tossed Alec's spare stele across the room and it bounced off the bed and onto the floor.

"Nothing?" Isabelle asked, her hope quickly fading.

Jace just shook his head. "He's still alive though... I'd know if he was dead," Jace said.

"Well I guess we're doing this the old-fashioned way," Isabelle said, quickly turning and leaving her brother's room.

Without arguing, Jace followed Isabelle and prepared to search for his Parabatai.

_-o-O-o-_

Alec became aware of a throbbing pain at the back of his head and he slowly opened his eyes.

At first, things were a little fuzzy but after a moment, he recognized his surroundings as the Seelie Court.

Alec went to sit up but as he moved, he felt something dig into his wrists.

With a hiss, he managed to turn his head enough to see that his wrists – and ankles – were bound with a thorny vine. He pulled at it in an attempt to break the vine but it was wound around too many times to be broken by a simple pull.

"There's no use in trying to escape," Alec heard a female's voice say.

His eyes glanced in the direction the voice had come from and the Seelie Queen stepped into his view.

Alec just ignored her and continued to move until he had managed to sit up against the wall.

"What do you want with me?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at the red-haired woman in front of him.

The Seelie Queen chuckled, the sound bouncing off the walls and she stared down at Alec.

Although her face showed no emotion, Alec swore he could've seen something flash behind her eyes – sadness maybe?

"You took Meliorn's life. I will take yours as revenge," the Seelie Queen replied, a twisted smile appearing on her face.

Alec pulled at the vines again, ignoring the fact that the thorns were digging into his skin. "You won't get away with this," Alec said through his teeth.

"But I already have," the Seelie Queen said. "They won't be able to track you here and I'm sure we're the last thing your dear friends will think about when searching for you. Just think about it like this... if you die now, you won't have to watch your friends fall later."

The Seelie Queen's voice was hard and cold as she spoke and it made a shiver run down Alec's spine.

"You won't get away with this," Alec repeated. "The Clave will find out and it will be the end of you."

The Seelie Queen just chuckled again. "You're such a silly young boy," she said, shaking her head. "By the time the Clave hear about anything, there will be no evidence that anything happened here."

Alec narrowed his eyes and did his best to ignore the pain in his wrists.

"You will regret this," Alec said. "Trust me."

_-o-O-o-_

Jace, Isabelle and Magnus had gone out to search for Alec and Clary had stayed back at the institute just in case he turned up there.

Even Luke and some of the pack members were helping in the search for Alec and in the hour they had been searching, they had found absolutely nothing.

"Damn it!" Jace exclaimed, punching the air in front of him.

He raked a hand through his blonde hair and let his eyes scan the area around him.

"What are we going to do?" Isabelle's worried voice asked from behind Jace.

"I don't know," Jace replied, turning to see Isabelle's worried face.

She was a strong girl but Jace could see how broken she was at the moment. She looked as if she would start crying at any moment.

Jace let out a long sigh and looked around once more.

"You know what... I'm going to see if the Seelie Queen knows anything," Jace said as he started heading towards the entrance to the Seelie Court.

"I'm coming with you," Isabelle said as she followed Jace.

_-o-O-o-_

Tree roots dangled from the ceiling as Jace as Isabelle made their way towards the throne room of the Court.

Jace didn't care that they should wait for a knight to come and get them, he just moved, desperate for information.

The entrance to the throne room soon came into his vision and Jace moved closer to it, slowing down as he neared the entrance.

Hanging on the rock was a curtain of thorny vines, dotted here and there with dark purple flowers.

Jace pulled a dagger from his weapons belt and was about to part the curtain when he heard the sudden sound of footsteps.

"Jace," he heard Isabelle's voice say urgently.

He took a step back and looked at her before he realized she was staring at something at the other end of the tunnel.

He turned around just in time to see a crowd of faeries heading straight towards them.

He dodged the first attack but felt the impact as another faerie barrelled into his side.

He lost his balance and fell to the ground, landing on the compacted dirt with a thud.

He rolled slightly and pushed a faerie off him before he swung the dagger out in an arc, making the faerie back up even further.

Jace scrambled backwards and managed to get to his feet.

He kept his eyes on the faerie crowd in front of him and as he stopped backing up, he noticed Isabelle had her electrum whip out.

"There's too many of them Jace," she said quietly, her eyes quickly raking over the crowd that was slowly approaching them.

"I know..." Jace replied as he held a seraph blade out in front of him. "Call Magnus and get him to get us out of here," he continued, just as a faerie launched itself at Jace.

Just like that, the crowd surged forward and Jace began moving, dodging some attacks while he swung his seraph blade around, wounding some of the faeries.

"Now Isabelle! Call Magnus!" Jace said, noticing Isabelle was just standing there.

It was clear that she wanted to fight – she wanted to help Jace but she knew she had to call Magnus.

Jace noticed her move back slightly and he saw her pull her phone out. He returned his attention to the fight.

A green-eyed faerie launched himself at Jace and collided with his side, sending him further into the crowd of rather angry faeries.

Jace didn't quite know what was going on but he quickly regained his balance and threw himself into the fight, his seraph blade glowing a bright white as he swung it around.

_-o-O-o-_

The phone continued to ring and Isabelle almost thought Magnus wasn't going to pick up.

Just as she was about to hang up to try again, Magnus's voice came from the other end. "Isabelle! Did you find Alec?" he asked, a hopeful tone evident in his voice.

"No," Isabelle said. "Jace and I decided we would see the Seelie Queen to see if she knew anything but when we got here, we couldn't get to the throne room. There's a huge crowd of faeries and apparently we've pissed them off. Jace is trying to hold them off now... we need you to get us out of here," Isabelle said frantically, her eyes searching the crowd of faeries for Jace.

"Alright... I'll open a portal and you two better be ready to get out of there," Magnus said before the line went dead.

Isabelle shoved her phone back into her pocket and grabbed the handle of her whip before she swung it around in an arc.

She launched herself into the fight to get to Jace. The light of his seraph blade was getting pushed further and further back.

A pain shot up Isabelle's arm and she looked down to see a few long scratches trailing down her arm, blood slowly seeping out.

She growled at the blue eyed faerie beside her. He was smirking which only ticked Isabelle off more and she threw a punch; it landed right on his nose.

With a satisfied smirk on her face, Isabelle continued to push her way through the faeries and when she was close enough, she grabbed Jace's arm and he looked over at her briefly, his seraph blade plunging into a faerie that had obviously gone too far.

When Jace looked back at Isabelle she nodded her head back towards where she had come from and started moving back through the crowd.

Jace and Isabelle broke free a moment later but the faeries were still trying to attack.

As Jace and Isabelle backed further away, the faeries seemed to calm down a bit but they stayed in defensive positions, some glaring, others just standing there like guards, ready to pounce at any given moment.

The familiar blue glow of a portal started coming from the wall to the left of Jace and with a quick glance at Isabelle he jumped through it, Isabelle hot on his heels.

_-o-O-o-_

The two shadowhunters landed on the soft green grass of Central Park and Jace looked up to see Magnus holding the portal open.

As soon as Jace and Isabelle were both through the portal, Magnus closed it just in case the faeries tried to follow.

"What happened exactly?" Magnus asked.

"We went to the Seelie Court and tried to see the Queen but the faeries came in and stopped us... it's like they didn't want us to go in there..." Isabelle said, shaking slightly.

Magnus sighed and looked down at the ground. "There's something going on..." he muttered to himself.

Jace walked over to Isabelle and wrapped and arm around her shoulders.

He could really see how broken she was right now. She wore a mask of worry and as he looked down at her, he could see tears rimming her eyes but not spilling over – yet anyway.

"We'll find him," he said. "No matter what Isabelle, we will find him. I won't stop looking and you know it. We'll find him."

**A/N: ****Lately I've been getting quite a few questions from some of you guys about writing etc and I've created a facebook page where I am sharing writing tips, etc for anyone that's interested. It's called The Writer's Corner... there will be a link on my profile!**

**Review Please!**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Two Weeks Later – July 2008

Two weeks had passed since Alec's disappearance and the Clave's hope of finding him was slipping and they had changed his status from 'missing' to 'presumed dead' – even the residents of the New York Institute were slowly starting to lose hope but they continued searching nonetheless.

The shadowhunters had called off the search for the night and Isabelle was sitting on her bed, her chin resting on her knees while she fought back the tears.

She'd already lost one brother and she didn't want to be losing another.

They'd been searching all day for the past two weeks and they hadn't found anything that could possibly lead them to Alec.

Memories that Isabelle shared with Alec started to flood her mind: Alec lying with her during a storm when they were younger; Alec teaching Isabelle how to hold a weapon; training together; fighting together; arguments they had shared...

Isabelle was pulled from her thoughts when her door shut with an audible click.

She looked up quickly and saw Clary standing in the room, a small baby bump visible underneath her pale blue tank top.

"What are you doing in here Clary?" Isabelle asked as Clary walked over to the bed.

"I just wanted to make sure you were alright..." Clary said. "I know how hard this is on Jace and I can only imagine how hard it is for you."

And that was when the tears started to fall. Isabelle threw her arms around Clary and started sobbing into her shoulder.

"This can't be happening... Alec has to be out there somewhere," Isabelle sobbed.

Clary was slightly shocked by Isabelle's actions but she wrapped her arms around the taller girl in comfort.

"I know... I'm sure we'll find him... we just need a little more time," Clary said. "Alec is a fighter and I'm sure he's out there somewhere. I'm sure he's alright... trust me. You know everyone is doing everything they can and even if the Clave gives up, you know we won't."

Isabelle's sobs lessened but tears were still falling down her cheeks. "I know," she said, pulling away from Clary. "I just... I don't want to lose another brother... I've already lost Max and I just can't lose Alec."

"I know... Jace would know if something was terribly wrong anyway... he would tell us. Alec is fine... he should be fine anyway..."

Isabelle smiled at Clary and wiped away the tears that had slipped down her cheeks. "Thanks Clary... you know how to cheer someone up... and you're going to be a great mother..." Isabelle said before she got up to go to her bathroom so she could clean up and change.

Clary returned Isabelle's smile and stood up again. With a simple nod, Clary turned and walked out of the bedroom.

_**-o-O-o-**_

Clary felt happy that someone was supporting her with her pregnancy. Jace, of course, had been shocked but thrilled when he received the news and he had become over-protective of Clary – more so than before. When Clary argued with him about something or questioned his over-protectiveness, Jace simply responded by saying he was looking out for Clary and their unborn child – a future Herondale.

Magnus and Alec had been happy for Clary as well and Magnus seemed to be rather interested in Clary's pregnancy, always asking questions and helping her out with any problems.

Isabelle, as Clary had just discovered, was happy as well and thought that Clary was going to be a great mother – something that Clary herself doubted. She was still young and wasn't sure if she would be able to raise a child, continue her shadowhunter duties and find time for everyone else that was important to her.

Isabelle's words of encouragement though had Clary believing in herself a little more.

Maryse and Robert were a bit shocked when Clary and Jace made the announcement but they came around and both were happy for Clary and Jace.

Jocelyn and Luke on the other hand had been a totally different story and their reaction was still fresh in Clary's mind.

As she walked down the hall towards the room that she now shared with Jace, her mind filled with the memory of Jocelyn and Luke's reaction.

_Clary and Jace were sitting in the living room of Luke's place, waiting for Jocelyn and Luke to return from the kitchen._

_Luke returned a moment later with a plate of sandwiches and Jocelyn was carrying a few mugs of coffee._

_The mugs of coffee and the plate of sandwiches were set on the coffee table between the two small couches and Luke smiled at Clary and Jace. "So... why have you two decided to visit today?" he asked as he picked up a sandwich._

_Clary simply looked at Jace, a series of emotions playing across her face. Jace squeezed Clary's hand in response and gave her encouraging smile._

_Despite her nerves, Clary turned to face her mother and Luke and she took a deep breath._

"_Well..." she began. "Please don't be mad or anything but... well... you see..." Clary stuttered._

_She took another deep breath and continued. "I know we're both really young and all but... one night while we were in the demon realm during the Dark War Jace and I... went a little further than normal during one of our... make out sessions... and then there have been other times..." Clary said, feeling her cheeks heat up at the awkwardness of the conversation. She knew that she could make this so much simpler but she was stringing it out and making things more complicated and embarrassing._

"_We... we normally used protection but one night...after one of Magnus's parties... well..." Clary trailed off at the look on her mother's face. Her mouth was a tight line and her eyes were narrowed._

"_I knew he was bad news!" She exclaimed, standing up from the couch and pointing at Jace. "I should've kept you away from him when I had the chance and now he's ruined your life!"_

"_Mom!" Clary exclaimed._

"_No Clary. I know what it's like to be a young mother and it is not easy! You should've been more careful! You should've stayed away from him," Jocelyn said, glaring at Jace who was clearly uncomfortable with the current situation. "You're a lot younger than I was when I fell pregnant with... Jonathan... and he was raised by Valentine! He won't be a good father!" _

"_Mom!" Clary shouted._

"_Jocelyn... calm down..." Luke said as he tried to make Jocelyn sit again. Clary could see the anger burning behind his blue eyes though and she was starting to feel a little scared._

_She was also upset at her mother's words but she bit back the tears._

"_You're wrong... Jocelyn..." Jace said, speaking for the first time since they had arrived at Luke's house. "I may have been raised by Valentine but I am NOT Valentine. I am my own person and I wouldn't ever think about hurting Clary or our child. I love Clary more than anything and our child will have a great life..."_

"_Enough!" Jocelyn exclaimed. "I don't trust you! You are merely a teenage boy and teenage boys cannot be trusted! You have ruined my daughter's life! You've made her a mother way too young because you can't control yourself!"_

_Clary stood up quickly, pulling her hand out of Jace's and stared at her mother angrily, her face heating up but instead of being red with embarrassment, she was red with anger._

"_Just stop it Mom! Jace cares about me and I care about him! We both love each other and if you can't see that, you must be blind! My life has not been ruined, if anything, Jace made it a whole lot better! Why can't you just be happy for me!?" _

_Clary felt Jace's hands on her waist and she calmed down slightly, but she was still glaring at her mother and her heart was still pounding in her chest._

"_You're too young for this Clary. If you must go through with this pregnancy, you'll be putting the child up for adoption," Jocelyn said._

"_I will NOT!" Clary shouted, stomping her foot angrily._

"_Yes you will. You are not eighteen yet and you will do as you are told."_

"_You can't tell me what to do! This is my child and I will be keeping it and raising it with Jace! I hate you!" Clary shouted before she pulled away from Jace and stormed out of the house._

_Jace had come out a moment later and he had chased after Clary who was already a good distance from Luke's house._

"_Clary!" she heard Jace call._

_She had stopped and turned around to wait for Jace. Once he reached her, he wrapped his arms around her and she immediately let the tears fall as she held onto the only person that could calm her down._

Clary reached up and wiped her face, only just becoming aware of the tears that were slipping down her cheeks.

"Clary, what's wrong?" Jace asked, appearing in the hall.

"Just thinking about my mother's reaction to our announcement," Clary replied, throwing herself into Jace's arms.

Jace sighed and gently stroked Clary's back before he pulled back slightly.

"I love you Clary... and I won't be leaving you, no matter how stressful this gets. I will stay by your side. Always," he said.

Clary smiled up at Jace and reached up to kiss him.

_**-o-O-o-**_

Two weeks, Alec thought. He had been stuck in the Faerie Court for two weeks and hadn't been rescued. He was certain his friends and family were searching for him though.

He was leaning up against the wall, drifting in and out of consciousness. He hadn't been sleeping much due to the fact that he didn't trust the faeries and he hadn't been getting much food or water – just enough to keep him alive so he could feel the pain as the Seelie Queen tortured him slowly.

"Why don't you just kill me?" Alec asked weakly as the Seelie Queen walked back into the room, something dangling from her hand.

"Because, Alexander, that would just be too easy," she said, a wicked smirk appearing on her face as she brought her hand up above her head.

Merely seconds later, Alec felt a stinging pain flare across his cheek and he hissed.

When he looked at the Seelie Queen again, he saw that she was holding a thorny vine and was using it as a whip.

After another few flicks of her wrist, Alec could feel blood trickling down his arms and cheek and he could feel the pain of thorns digging into his skin.

The Seelie Queen left, chuckling to herself and Alec leaned his head back against the wall.

It was starting to get cold in the Seelie Court, thanks to the fact that it was underground, and Alec shivered slightly.

He moved – very slightly – in an attempt to get a little more comfortable and felt something in his back pocket.

Despite the pain he was in due to the Seelie Queen's torturing, he moved around until he could pull the object out of his pocket.

It finally emerged from his pocket and he put it on the ground before he moved again to ease the pain the thorny vine was inflicting on his wrists – he still hadn't been able to break the vines due to the thickness of them.

When he looked back down at the ground, he realized he had pulled his phone out of his pocket.

He moved around so he could grab it and quickly managed to text someone before he hid his phone again.

He didn't know who he had sent the text to but he knew it would be someone that would get him help.

He didn't have much time to text so he typed two simple words.

_Fey. Help._

**A/N: And there is the end of this chapter! Sorry it took so long for me to update... I had a bit of trouble writing this chapter but I know what's happening next! **

**BTW, this is your last chance to submit your surname suggestions for Simon! His ascension is coming up! Fairchild? Graymark? Something else – Daylighter seems to be one you guys are suggesting a lot...?**

**Review Please!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Okay guys... I've gone back over the previous chapters and I have edited them because I realized my dates were really wrong... (Thank you to AJ Granger for bringing this to my attention! When I saw your review, I immediately grabbed my copy of CoHF and mentally kicked myself like, a million times when I realized I'd messed up the dates!) I realized that, again, thanks to AJ Granger's review, if Clary had somehow fallen pregnant during that night in the demon realm, she would be about ready to give birth now... sorry for messing that up! **

**Anyway, it isn't exactly necessary for you to read over the previous chapters but you can if you want to. Basically, I have edited them so that Clary fell pregnant in late April after she and Jace got carried away after one of Magnus's parties and they forgot to use protection. Also... last chapter was set in July... not August... I totally forgot about July... oops...**

**Anyway... that's enough of my authors note... on with the next chapter!**

Chapter 7

Clary's phone was beeping on her dresser, notifying her that she had a text waiting to be read but she was currently focusing on Jace who was talking to her stomach – well, the baby in her stomach.

Clary laughed lightly as Jace mumbled things about the shadow world and how much he loved their baby and Clary.

"I'll teach you how to fight and everything... it will be so much fun," Jace said, leaning down, pushing Clary's shirt up slightly and placing a kiss on her stomach.

Clary simply ran a hand through Jace's blonde hair and smiled. "I know it's early on in my pregnancy, but what do you hope the gender will be?" Clary asked Jace after a moment, still ignoring her phone.

Jace sat up and looked down at Clary. "I don't mind," Jace said. "A little boy would be nice, but so would a little girl," he continued.

Clary smiled and then looked over at her dresser, now annoyed by her phone.

With a sigh, she rolled off the bed and walked over to her dresser to grab her phone.

She picked it up and froze when she saw who had sent her a text.

_Alec._

"Clary?" Jace asked after a moment, his voice bringing Clary back to reality.

She quickly opened the text and read it.

_Fey. Help._

Clary sucked in a breath and whirled around, almost smacking into Jace who had moved off the bed and was now standing right behind her.

"What is it?" he asked, his gold eyes searching her face, trying to make sure Clary was alright.

Clary simply turned her phone around and showed Jace the text.

"Fey. Help." Jace read aloud. He then looked up at who had sent the text. "Alec... no wonder the faeries attacked when Isabelle and I went to talk to the Seelie Queen when Alec first went missing," Jace said as he turned and took off out the door.

_**-o-O-o-**_

Jace quickly walked down the hall towards Isabelle's room and once he reached the closed door, he banged on it. "Isabelle! Get changed. We're going to get Alec," Jace said before turning and walking down the hall towards his room so he could change into his gear.

He heard Isabelle's door open and her voice rang out down the hall. "What?" she asked.

"I'll explain later. Just get changed into your gear and get your weapons," Jace said before he walked into his room.

As usual, it was incredibly tidy and he immediately went to grab his gear and then he changed.

"Jace... I want to help," Clary said from the bed.

Jace sighed and turned around before he walked over and sat on the edge of the bed beside Clary.

"You can't. Not out there anyway," Jace said, shaking his head.

"Jace... I'm not heavily pregnant. I can still help," Clary said.

Jace shook his head again. "You're pregnant. I don't want you out there..." he said.

Clary gave a frustrated sigh and Jace took her face in his hands. "Clary... I don't want to risk you getting hurt... or our baby. You need to stay here where it's safe. I'll be back soon okay?"

Clary sighed again although this time, it wasn't a frustrated sigh. "You better come back or else I'm going to tell this baby that you got your ass kicked because you didn't let me come and protect you," Clary said.

Jace chuckled and leaned in to place a brief kiss on Clary's lips before he stood up and headed off to get his weapons.

_**-o-O-o-**_

Isabelle moved quickly to get dressed in her gear and as she walked out of her room, she almost ran into Jace.

"Do you really know where Alec is?" Isabelle asked as they headed towards the elevator.

"Yes. I'm fairly certain I do. Clary got a text from Alec... Alec's phone anyway... and it said 'Fey. Help.' So I'm assuming he is somewhere in the Seelie Court. I mean, it would explain why the faeries attacked us when we went to see the Seelie Queen," Jace explained before he pulled out his phone to call Magnus.

"What do you want?" Magnus asked when he picked up the phone.

"We need you to make a portal. I think I know where Alec is. Basically, Clary got a text from Alec's phone saying 'Fey. Help.' And I think he's in the Seelie Court somewhere," Jace said before hanging up, not even giving Magnus a chance to reply.

Isabelle and Jace reached the ground floor of the institute and they were waiting there for a few minutes before Magnus finally arrived.

"Took you long enough," Jace said.

Magnus just narrowed his eyes slightly at Jace and then got to work on opening a portal.

"Do you want me to come and help?" he asked.

"No-" Jace started but Isabelle cut him off.

"I think that might be a good idea," she said.

"We don't-" Jace started again.

"Jace. We may not have time to call him to get a portal opened if this one closes. Just shut up and get through the portal."

Jace rolled his eyes but turned and stepped through the portal, followed by Isabelle and Magnus.

_**-o-O-o-**_

The tunnels leading to the throne room were the same as usual – covered in moss with tree roots dangling from the ceiling.

Jace, Isabelle and Magnus crept quietly along the tunnel, watching their steps and keeping an eye out for any signs of the faeries.

Jace's hand hovered over the hilt of one of his seraph blades and as the entrance to the throne room came into view, he closed his fingers around the handle and he drew the blade out of its sheath.

Jace, Isabelle and Magnus came to a stop outside the throne room and pressed themselves up against the wall, listening to what was going on inside.

Jace could hear a female laugh and he listened carefully, trying to pick out voices.

"You're a silly boy, aren't you?" Jace heard and he immediately recognized the voice as the Seelie Queen's.

"You won't get away with this... they'll find me..."

It was Alec's voice that spoke next, raspy and tired. Jace's seraph blade was blazing in front of him a second later and he hurtled through the thorny curtain, an angry expression on his face.

Isabelle and Magnus were right behind Jace.

"Step away from him before I hurt you," Jace growled, holding out his blade as he spoke to the Seelie Queen.

She spun around, slightly shocked, before a wicked looking grin appeared on her face.

"Well... I didn't believe you would actually turn up here but since you are..." the Seelie Queen started, her wicked smirk growing.

Jace kept his eyes on the Seelie Queen, waiting for her to continue. She didn't speak again though.

"Uh... Jace," Isabelle said.

"What?" Jace asked, his eyes flickering between the Seelie Queen and his Parabatai.

"Look," Isabelle said, her voice shaking slightly.

Jace turned his head only to see a group of faeries standing in the entry to the throne room, many wearing armour and bearing weapons.

"Ever since the Dark War, we've been ready for an attack and this, Nephilim, is considered an attack. You are in your gear and you are bearing weapons. You have made a threat and therefore, you better be prepared," the Seelie Queen said just as the crowd of faeries surged forward into the room.

Jace, Isabelle and Magnus spun to face the crowd of faeries and soon, the room was filled with the sounds of a battle.

Occasionally, over the sounds of weapons clanging together or people crying out because of an injury, Jace could hear Alec speaking to the Seelie Queen, threatening her and talking about how he would be rescued.

Jace swung his seraph blade at one of the faeries that approached him with a blade of his own and the clang echoed throughout the throne room. "If you don't give up now, you'll die," he said as he pushed against the faerie.

The faerie simply chuckled in response, pulled his sword back and spun out of the way before swinging at Jace again, his blade swiping across Jace's cheek.

Jace hissed and then swung his own blade, making the faerie warrior back up.

As Jace approached the faerie warrior, he noticed that quite a few were fleeing the throne room as they watched fellow faeries fall.

He swung his blade again and it sliced through the faerie's weak armour and the faerie stumbled backwards into the wall.

By this point, the room was fairly empty. Jace, Isabelle, Magnus, Alec and the Seelie Queen were now the only people in the throne room, apart from the dozen dead faeries that lay on the ground and the few injured faeries that were trying desperately to get away.

Jace turned around slowly and walked towards the Seelie Queen and Alec.

His breathing was steady and his eyes were focused as he got closer. All of a sudden though, the Seelie Queen had moved and picked up the blade of a dead faerie warrior and she was holding it between herself and Jace.

"I may not be much of a fighter myself, but I will use this if I have to," she said, pointing the blade at Jace.

"And I'm not scared of you," Jace replied. "I am here to get Alec, now let him go or I will be forced to take action.

The Seelie Queen just chuckled. "He is going to die. He killed Meliorn so I will kill him," she said, turning the blade so it was pointed at Alec, merely centimetres from Alec's chest.

The Seelie Queen then pushed the blade forward and Jace lunged forward, colliding with her side.

Jace heard Alec groan and he whipped his head around, hoping nothing serious had happened.

His eyes scanned over Alec and luckily, there was no wound near his chest. There was, however, a cut along his shoulder.

If Jace had tackled the Seelie Queen any later, Alec may not be breathing anymore.

Jace then turned his attention back to the Seelie Queen who was lying underneath him on the ground, half propped against the wall; the blade she had been using lying a fair distance from her hand.

Jace then stood up and put one foot on the Seelie Queen and an attempt to keep her where she was. He then held his blade out, the tip of it at her throat.

"You have caused a lot of trouble for the Nephilim... and therefore you have caused a lot of trouble for my family. You almost killed my Parabatai just now... give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you," Jace growled, his gold eyes blazing.

"If you kill me, you'll have a lot more trouble," the Seelie Queen said.

"We face demons constantly... yes, you've caused a lot of trouble but no trouble is worse than the trouble demons cause," Jace said. "Promise me now that you will leave us alone or this will be the end of you," he continued.

The Seelie Queen didn't respond.

"Last chance," Jace said. "I'm growing impatient and I have a pregnant girlfriend waiting for me back at the institute. Promise me you will leave us alone or I will kill you."

The Seelie Queen smirked up at Jace. "Go ahead Nephilim. I dare you to," she said.

"I never back out of a dare," Jace said. "Goodbye."

With that, he thrust the blade forward, into the Seelie Queen's throat.

He pulled his blade back out, stared down at the Seelie Queen and then turned to go help Isabelle and Magnus with Alec.

Isabelle was cutting away the vines that held Alec's hands and ankles together and Magnus was attempting to remove some of the thorns that had embedded themselves in Alec's skin.

Jace dropped down beside his Parabatai and a look of relief washed over him as he pulled out his stele so he could draw an iratze on Alec.

"It sure took you long enough to find me..." Alec said tiredly, his eyelids drooping closed every now and again.

"Well... we couldn't track you... it wasn't until you sent that text to Clary that we knew exactly where you were. We've been searching ever since you went missing," Jace said, finishing off the iratze.

"And we would've found you earlier... but we were attacked... the night you went missing, we came here to ask the Seelie Queen if she knew anything but we couldn't get through..." Isabelle added.

Alec just sighed. "Well... she can't cause any more trouble now..." he said, glancing over at the Seelie Queen's unmoving body.

Jace and Isabelle nodded in agreement.

"Come on... let's get you back to the institute," Magnus said, reaching down to help Alec up.

**A/N: Review Please!**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

By the time Jace, Isabelle, Magnus and Alec reached the institute, Alec was passed out in Magnus's arms – he had barely been able to make it out of the Seelie Court before he passed out.

Jace opened the door to the institute and Magnus walked in carrying Alec, Isabelle behind him.

Jace shut the door and then followed Magnus and Isabelle to the infirmary where Alec would be spending the night.

"I told you we'd find him," Jace said to Isabelle, throwing an arm around her shoulders.

"I knew we'd find him... I was just worried... you know. I never doubted you," Isabelle replied.

Jace just smiled down at Isabelle and looked over at Magnus as he set Alec down on a bed before he glanced up at the clock. "It's 10pm... I think I'm going to put these away then go to bed," he said, turning to walk out of the infirmary with one last glance at Alec.

Jace walked off to clean and put away his weapons and then, after his weapons were put away again, he walked down to the room he shared with Clary and quietly opened the door to see Clary fast asleep on the bed, her fiery red hair spread out across the pillow.

Jace smiled and then silently slipped through the room, grabbing his pyjamas, and went into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.

He took of his gear and put it in the hamper before he stepped into the shower, switching on the water and letting the heat relax his muscles and calm him down after the fight he had just been a part of.

Once he had washed off, he switched off the water and climbed out of the shower, drying off and changing into his pyjamas.

He then hung the towel back on the rack and then he opened the bathroom door and slipped back into his bedroom.

As he walked over to the bed, he noticed that Clary was half-sitting up, rubbing her eyes.

"Did I wake you?" Jace asked as he climbed into the bed beside Clary.

"I heard the shower..." Clary replied sleepily. "Did you find Alec? Is he okay?"

"Yes, we found him... and he seems to be fine. He was beaten up a bit when we found him but he seems to be okay now... he's in the infirmary... I'll tell you more in the morning," Jace replied.

Clary nodded her head slowly, already falling back asleep.

"Get some rest Clary," Jace said with a small smile.

Clary simply made a small noise and her breathing became steady merely moments after she lay down again.

Jace lay down beside her and draped an arm over her waist before he laid his head on the pillow and closed his eyes.

_**-o-O-o-**_

When Clary woke up, Jace's side of the bed was empty and his pyjamas were folded neatly on his pillow.

'So he's already up,' Clary thought, rolling onto her back and stretching her arms above her head. She lay there for a few minutes before pushing the sheets off her body and getting out of the bed.

She walked across the room and went into the bathroom to brush her hair which, as usual, seemed to be uncontrollable.

After a good five minutes of trying to tame her hair, Clary pulled her red curls back into a ponytail and decided to go find Jace. She tried the training room first and then the kitchen. When she had no luck there, she decided Jace was more than likely in the infirmary with his Parabatai.

She grabbed an apple from the kitchen and headed off towards the infirmary.

Sure enough, she peered through the doors and Jace was sitting in one of the chairs beside Alec's bed, talking to Magnus who appeared as if he hadn't slept.

Clary walked over and stood beside Jace who immediately looked up with a smile. "Good morning Clary," he said.

"Morning..." Clary said, taking a bite of her apple. "How's Alec?" she asked, turning to look at Magnus.

There were a few faint lines on Alec's arms and cheek – no doubt from his ordeal in the Seelie Court.

"He's alright... he's healing well and should wake up shortly... he just needs rest," Magnus replied, glancing at his boyfriend before looking up at Clary.

"You look like you need rest," Clary said.

"I do... but I'll wait until tonight," Magnus replied.

Clary just shook her head slightly but left the matter alone. Magnus would do what he want and there wasn't really any way you could change his mind – especially when something revolved around Alec and his well-being.

"How did you sleep?" Jace asked Clary, entwining his fingers with hers.

"Pretty good," Clary replied. "What happened last night? Since I wasn't able to come..."

"Well basically... the Seelie Queen wanted revenge on Alec for Meliorn's death... she was planning to kill him slowly but... well, we got there in time to save him. There was a bit of a fight with the faerie warriors and a few of them died... others were injured and when the room was pretty much empty – due to the deaths and many of the faeries fleeing... the Seelie Queen tried to kill Alec..."

"And then Jace killed her," Isabelle said, walking into the infirmary.

Clary spun around to look at Isabelle. "Are you serious?" she asked.

Isabelle nodded. "Yep... he drove his seraph blade through her throat," Isabelle said.

Clary turned again to look at Jace. "I didn't kill her as soon as she threatened Alec's life... I tackled her so she wouldn't kill him and then I got pissed off... I tried to make her promise that she would leave us alone but she wouldn't," Jace said.

"And then you killed her," Isabelle said.

"She dared me to," Jace said.

"So?" Clary said. "You do realize the entire Faerie population will probably want to kill you now? Because you killed their Queen," she continued.

"That won't happen," Jace said, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms. He appeared as if he wasn't worried and that he believed his own words but there was something about his tone and the look that briefly danced across his face that told Clary otherwise.

"You're an idiot sometimes Jace," Clary said, shaking her head.

"I am not," Jace said.

"Yes you are," Clary replied, placing a hand over her barely-there baby bump.

"Please don't argue," Isabelle said. "Listen, I agree with Clary. The faeries will probably want to kill you Jace but I doubt it will happen. I mean, the faeries are no longer protected by the Accords and that means that if they cause trouble, the Shadowhunters can kill them. I doubt they would try anything... at the moment anyway," she continued, glancing between Clary and Jace.

"They could still attack though," Clary argued. "You're right. It may not be right away, it could be weeks or months before they decide to do anything but they will still do something eventually."

Isabelle just sighed and Jace went to talk but Clary held a hand up. "Don't say anything right now," she said, shaking her head. She then turned and simply walked out of the infirmary.

_**-o-O-o-**_

"You're an idiot Jace," Isabelle said once Clary had left.

"Shut up Isabelle," Jace replied.

"No," Isabelle said. "You should've thought before you killed the Seelie Queen."

"Why didn't you say anything to me last night then?" Jace snapped.

"Because I was too focused on helping Alec!" Isabelle snapped back. "And afterwards... well... you didn't really give me a chance to say anything."

Jace just sighed and shook his head.

"I'm sorry..." he mumbled, looking down and playing with the Herondale ring.

"Go talk to Clary... we'll work things out here," Isabelle said.

After a moment of playing with the Herondale ring, Jace stood up and headed out of the infirmary to search for Clary.

_**-o-O-o-**_

Clary – simply needing some time to think – had gone up to the greenhouse and was sitting on one of the benches, her hands gripping the edge and her head bowed forward.

Various scenarios played through her mind – all a result of Jace's actions in the Seelie Court last night; the faeries attacking the institute, the faeries going after Jace, the faeries harming their child... Clary shook her head, and drew in a sharp breath when she looked up and saw the familiar pair of gold eyes staring at her.

"Clary..." Jace said, slowly walking forward and taking a seat next to Clary. "Listen... please."

Clary let her eyes flick towards Jace and she let out a sigh before turning slightly, loosening her grip on the edge of the bench.

"I wasn't thinking last night and I know it was stupid to kill the Seelie Queen but... I mean... if it was me in Alec's position, Alec would've done the same thing... and I'm sure Izzy would've killed the Seelie Queen if she had the chance... I was just so worried about Alec and I was so pissed off at the Seelie Queen that I wasn't thinking properly at the time... if I had the ability to rewind time, I would... and I wouldn't have killed the Seelie Queen... I would've turned her into the Clave or something..." Jace rambled.

Clary let her hand rest over Jace's and she looked up at him. "I over reacted in the infirmary," she said quietly. "I mean... yes... you were an idiot but..." she sighed. "I'm sorry... just please be careful from now on... you may just have a faerie army coming after you..."

"The faeries aren't meant to carry weapons without permission from the Clave. All the faeries that tried to attack us in the Seelie Court were breaking the rules... they should all technically be killed..."

"You have no proof now though Jace... the Clave won't do anything if you don't have proof," Clary said.

"I know... I'm sorry about what I did... I truly am and I can see how worried you are," Jace said, reaching out and gently running his thumb over Clary's cheek. "But I won't let anything happen to you or our baby. I'll protect you with my life."

Clary simply leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Jace, her fingers playing with the hair at the back of his neck. She felt his arms wind around her back and she sat still, not wanting to move.

She felt protected in Jace's arms; she felt as if nothing could harm her. She also felt as if she had the strength to protect him. Together, they were a team and Clary was certain that they would work their way through the new mess that Jace had created.

_**-o-O-o-**_

"Another six weeks and you'll be ascending," Isabelle said as she sat beside Simon in his room.

"And those six weeks are going to fly by..." Simon said.

Isabelle nodded. "Indeed..." she said. "And now that you're nearly finished with all the histories and everything, you'll be starting some serious physical training... I know you've started some physical training but it's going to be even harder in the coming weeks..."

"I know... it's crazy to think that in about six weeks I'll be like you though..." Simon mumbled. "I mean... two months ago, if someone told me about all this I would think they were crazy but now, here I am... learning about something many people don't believe in..."

Isabelle sighed. "Two months ago you would've thought people were crazy...yet about eight months ago, you believed in all this... and you knew everything... now you've got to learn it all again," she said, blinking back the tears that threatened to fall as she thought about her past with Simon.

"I wish I could remember my past with you Izzy... but I can't... I remember some things, as I've told you a million times... but I don't remember everything and I doubt I ever will remember everything... I know you're important to me though and that's all that matters right now... I'm glad that you guys showed up and spoke to me when you did because Isabelle... I don't know what I would do if you weren't in my life," Simon said.

Isabelle let out a small smile and reached up to wipe her eyes, cursing her emotions. "And I don't know what I would do if you weren't a part of my life. Simon... you're the only guy I've ever met that makes me nervous... and when you forgot everything... I was a mess," she said, blinking back more tears. "And I don't know what I would be like if you didn't remember anything... I would've probably ended up locking myself in my room forever... kind of like I was planning to when... when Max was killed... but you remembered something... and now you're here... and you're a part of my life again... and I couldn't be happier," she continued, smiling over at Simon and wiping away the tears that had spilled over.

"Well..." Simon said. "I'm glad you're happy because someone like you doesn't deserve to be upset. Isabelle... I will do everything I can to make you happy for as long as possible."

Isabelle let out another smile. "You're so sweet... and that's why I like you," she said.

She had almost told him she loved him but she didn't want to push Simon into anything until he was ready. Yes, they had both admitted their love to each other but that was before Simon lost his memory. It was a heroic move but it came with consequences – consequences that Isabelle was willing to face if it meant she would eventually get to be with the man she loved.

**A/N: And there is the end of chapter 8... I had to put some Sizzy in there because... well... I feel like I've been leaving them out a lot... review please!**


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